Ichiro’s Strategy Was Made in Japan

When baseball scouts got their first look at Seattle right fielder Ichiro Suzuki in spring training and the first month of the season, they labeled him a slap hitter because it seemed all he did was chop grounders and hit soft line drives to the left side.

It was all a set-up, according to the Angels’ set-up man.

“I knew he could pull the ball, but I think [going to the opposite field] was his idea all along,” said reliever Shigetoshi Hasegawa, a four-year teammate of Ichiro’s with Japan’s Orix Blue Wave. “Even in Japan, early in the season, he’d try to go the other way.”

Ichiro’s thinking, according to Hasegawa, is that if he hit pitches on the outside part of the plate to the opposite field, pitchers would start coming inside with offerings Ichiro could pull or drive with more authority.

Ichiro had only three home runs to go with his American League-leading .356 average entering Friday night’s game against the Angels, but he had 17 doubles, six triples and 33 runs batted in. And Hasegawa believes there’s more where that came from.

“He’s going to hit for more power,” Hasegawa said. “I don’t want him to be like that against us, but he can hit more home runs. If he hits for more power, he’ll be like Bernie Williams and then we’ll have no chance. We might as well just walk him.”

Ichiro presents unique defensive challenges for opponents because of his speed and ability to make contact. In 323 at-bats before Friday, he had 16 strikeouts. Friday night, Angel shortstop David Eckstein shaded considerably toward third, leaving a huge hole up the middle.

“The shortstop can’t play as deep because of his speed and ability to chop the ball to that side, and the third baseman has to respect the bunt,” Angel Manager Mike Scioscia said. “He uses a lot of the field and that creates a lot of holes.”

Hasegawa, on the disabled list since May 20 because of a slight tear in his rotator cuff, impressed Scioscia so much during a two-inning simulated game Friday that the right-hander he will likely begin a rehabilitation assignment with Class-A Rancho Cucamonga on Monday. Scioscia felt Hasegawa would need at least two simulated games before going on rehab. There’s a good chance Hasegawa could rejoin the Angels for next weekend’s series against the Mariners in Anaheim. . . . Reliever Ben Weber’s lower right thigh tightened Friday after being drilled by a Gabe Kapler liner in the eighth inning Thursday night in Texas. The ball left a nasty welt, but Scioscia said Weber was available to pitch Friday night.

TONIGHT

ANGELS’ PAT RAPP

(1-7, 4.55 ERA)

vs.

MARINERS’ JAMIE MOYER

(8-2, 4.54 ERA)

Safeco Field, Seattle, 7

TV--Channel 9. Radio--KLAC (570), XPRS (1090).

Update--Pitching and defense may win games, but pitching, defense and offense wins lots of them. The Mariners entered Friday night’s game with the league’s second-best batting average (.285) and on-base percentage (.363), third-best team earned-run average (3.95) and best fielding percentage (.984). Rapp has not won a decision in his last eight starts despite posting an ERA of 3.26 in those games. The primary reason: The Angels have scored 21 runs in those games. Moyer is the type of soft-throwing left-hander who has given the Angels problems.